Restoring the shine

Coach: Beating Barca would be fantastic

Created on 13-04-2009 at 00:00 AM

Christians the world over believe in miracles at Easter, but the main characteristic of such events is that they are truly exceptional and rare. Footballing miracles are no different. At 4-0 down from the first leg, Bayern know they are no longer realistically in with a shout of reaching the Champions League semi-finals at Barcelona’s expense.

“After what happened to us over there, we’re not entertaining dreams of sticking four or five past them. But it would be fantastic to beat them,” commented Jürgen Klinsmann on the eve of the quarter-final return (Live in English from 8.30 pm on FCB Web Radio).

To make the last four, Bayern need to win by five clear goals in front of a 66,000 full house at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday evening. That would rate as one of the most miraculous results ever in the history of European football: no team has ever overturned a 4-0 deficit from the first leg in the Champions League. “Getting through will be incredibly difficult, but we can’t abandon our belief. If you don’t believe you can do it, you needn’t turn up,” declared captain Mark van Bommel, adding with a grin: “The world hasn’t suddenly run out of miracles.”